We decided to come back here for three reasons:
- We missed the organ concert last year. Theirs is the largest cathedral organ in Europe.
- I loved the Balkan food at the restaurant next to our hotel.
- It’s a good stop between Munich and Cesky Krumlov
Notes…
Friday, 25 Nov
- Passau is a good example of a German Christmas market (Christkindlmarkt).
- It’s a mid-size market – 50-60 booths
- It’s in an old, historic town of medium size – population about 50,000
- There are several tour buses here. However, of the 10 I could see from our hotel only one did not have a driver in or near the bus. As it gets dark they will be off to a hotel in a larger city.
- There are tourists staying in Passau hotels but I have yet to hear anyone speaking English.
- It’s commercial, but it’s also a family-friendly community event.
- We had lunch at the Balkan restaurant soon after we arrived. It was just as good as I remembered.
- Correction – The buses did leave but were replaced by a Viking boat. Then we started hearing English.
Saturday, 26 Nov
- It’s much more crowded today. Still, most seem to be local or regional. There are lots of families with young children.
- We wandered some of the narrow streets between Domplatz and the 3 rivers. Very few people, in contrast to the market and shopping areas.
Don’t miss…
- The organ concert at St. Stephen’s Cathedral
- Walking along the Danube and Inn rivers (the third river enters the other side of the Danube)
If you drive…
- Contact your hotel in advance to get directions to their parking, or look online for a parking garage that’s not in the city center. Don’t get caught driving in the narrow streets full of pedestrians.
- Look for a hotel on the Danube side. Some of those have parking. They have very little parking space so reserve a space in advance if possible.
- Be prepared for very small parking spaces in the garages.
Beaten path index: 3.1 (See the key here)
- Cameras: 3
- Language: 4.5 (4 with Viking, 5 without)
- Path: 3
- Tourists: 2 (but most are local or regional)
Priority for a repeat visit (1-5): 2
We have enjoyed both of our visits, but there are too many other places we want to go.
Links
Passauer Christkindlmarkt
lmarkt.de/en/
Hotel Konig
This is a very old hotel but the rooms have been modernized. It is very comfortable and clean. There are fewer than 50 rooms (5 floors with guest rooms; no more than 10 rooms per floor). Parking and access to the Danube are on the ground level, reception on the second, and access to the city from the fourth (floor 2 on the elevator).
Performers
We only saw two street performances. One was by a family group singing in some language – not German. The other was a young man playing a hammered dulcimer.
Some of our favorite photos
Other photos
Some of the places we visited (Careful – if you’re using a scroll wheel it will cause the map to zoom)
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